College basketball: Central Ohio Watch

Tuesday

Jan 14, 2014 at 12:01 AMJan 14, 2014 at 9:52 AM

It was just an exhibition game against a Division II team, but for J.D. Weatherspoon, it might as well have been the NCAA tournament when Toledo played Hillsdale on Nov. 3 at Savage Hall. "What a feeling that was," Weatherspoon said. "I was back on the court. It was so much fun. Everything came back so naturally. I could play again."

Mark Znidar, The Columbus Dispatch

J.D. Weatherspoon, Toledo

It was just an exhibition game against a Division II team, but for J.D. Weatherspoon, it might as well have been the NCAA tournament when Toledo played Hillsdale on Nov. 3 at Savage Hall.

“What a feeling that was,” Weatherspoon said. “I was back on the court. It was so much fun. Everything came back so naturally. I could play again.”

Weatherspoon scored only eight points and the Rockets struggled to win 85-84 in overtime, but it didn’t matter. He was playing major college basketball for the first time since the spring of 2012. Afterward, the big man gave thanks for second chances. Weeks after his sophomore year at Ohio State, Weatherspoon decided to transfer.

Buckeyes coach Thad Matta, he said, was not to blame for Weatherspoon’s failing to carve a niche on the team.

“Part of it was playing time,” Weatherspoon said. “But I messed up with my grades as a freshman and got into a hole academically. That was my fault. I didn’t work hard enough on my grades and that sure put me into the doghouse. I needed to get somewhere else for a fresh start.”

The numbers on and off the court at Toledo for the 6-foot-6, 215-pound forward from Northland have been impressive. Weatherspoon has a 3.3 grade-point average in sports management. He is averaging 11.2 points and a team-leading 5.9 rebounds and shooting 55.6 percent for a team that is 13-2.

“I came to Toledo because I thought it was going to be the next big deal in the Mid-American Conference,” Weatherspoon said. “I also knew they wanted guys who would be good on and off the court. You are not just a basketball player here. They keep on you to get your academics done. It has been great for me here.”

Sitting out one season after transferring was the most difficult part. Weatherspoon watched from the bench in street clothes while the Rockets won a share of the MAC West Division title.

Coach Tod Kowalczyk was disappointed with Weatherspoon’s play during practices.

“I don’t think he used the redshirt year as well as he had to,” Kowalczyk said. “I think he got bored a little. I’m proud of his development, and not just on the basketball court. He was scholar-athlete of the week this fall.”

Weatherspoon, though, disagreed with the “bored” comment.

“I was so frustrated just sitting there,” he said. “It was hard watching my teammates play. I was just powerless. I thought I could help the team.”

Kowalczyk took over the Toledo program after the NCAA stripped it of scholarships for not meeting APR requirements under predecessor Stan Joplin. Kowalczyk brought a reputation for being an academic stickler from Wisconsin-Green Bay.

“Coach told me to just get better at everything,” Weatherspoon said. “He told me to get a solid year of school in so I could play basketball with my mind at ease. That’s what I did. I’m a happy guy. I just take it one day at a time.”

Weatherspoon excited Ohio State fans with thunderous dunks that sometimes changed momentum of games. Kowalczyk said his game has developed beyond the sensational.

“J.D. is a very good passer and he can step out and shoot,” he said. “I’d like to see him shoot on the perimeter more. I don’t know if there is a more versatile defender (in the league). He is the only guy on our team who can guard (all five positions). That’s rare.”